NEW DELHI: South Korean nationals can now fly into India and get hold of a visa on arrival since the dwelling ministry recently authorised South Korea as the only nation other than Japan qualified for this facility. The visa on arrival problems will be the exact same as Japan, allowing South Korean passport holders double entry for a period not exceeding 60 times for enterprise, tourism, health-related and meeting purposes.

According to household ministry sources, the visa on arrival facility, prolonged with impact from October 1, 2018, can be availed at 6 designated airports in India — Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Hyderabad.

Visa on arrival facility was 1st prolonged by India to Japanese nationals in March 2016. It can now be availed of by Japanese and now South Korean nationals who do not have residence or profession in India and are of an certain monetary standing. Visa on arrival is non-extendable and non-convertible.

According to an estimate, about 2 lakh Indian visas are issued to South Korean nationals each individual yr, of which 80 per cent are for tourism intent. On an typical, 600 South Korean nationals get there in Delhi everyday, claimed a PTI report.

Nevertheless visa on arrival facility was previously made available to citizens of 12 international locations — Cambodia, Finland, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Luxembourg, Myanmar, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam and South Korea — it was discontinued in November 2014 just after the launch of e-Tourist Visa plan. E-visa facility is now extended to 166 countries and e-visas type 40% of the full visas issued by India.

The payment for acquiring a visa on arrival is Rs 2,000. Japanese and South Korean nationals need to carry a duly-loaded up visa on arrival application variety and disembarkation card and strategy the “visa counter” at any of the six designated airports in India. These files are scrutinised by the immigration officer who, when happy with the eligibility of the applicant, stamps the application and directs the applicant to the immigration counter. Just after payment of charge, the biometrics and impression of the applicant are captured. The immigration officer then stamps the passport and collects the disembarkation card.